The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1887-05-19

IuSSSo ~ CIO SuIuO S1NAAS "0y
disclosed to him what since has proven
to be the richest silver mine in the
world. Let the farmers of u country
in their toilsome pursuit lay hold of
the clover plant at it's roots are greater
wealth than was uncovered on Potasl.
Plant it's tiny seed in the earth and it
will unlock the precious elements of
fertility. Then harvests will be to
reap, where now are wide stretches Of
uninviting field,
"And scatter plenty DER a smiling land"
Cotton has been styled king, corn
the great feed grain crop Of our ma
ton, wheat the bread crop-the staff
Of life-all those to be grown profit
ably require a fertile soil, and that fer
tility kept up. A good clover sod
we'll plowed under along the latter
part of summer-about August, and
planted to wheat in the fall gives gen
orally the choicest crop of that grain;
or planted to corn in the spring,
it shows in that crop a like marked
effect at shocking time. All root
crops, and hoed crops generally, re-
spond most ~favorably when planted on
a good clover lay.
The seed bed Of all the grasses and
clovers must be well plowed, the
surface as thoroughly pulverized as
possible, the richer the better, of
course. With the soil thus worked,
you can SOW clover where you are
justified in sowing a wheat crop.
Timothy, orchard grass, blue grass,
red top and the clovers will probably
do best if sown in the fall-along in
observation-disclosures either of these
grasses are as hardy rs the wheat and
can be sown at the same time. Clover,
if not sown by the first of October,
had better be left till spring and then
sown on the wheat field along the
latter half of March and first week in
April, narrowing the ground once or
twice and you will pretty generally
get a stand if the weather does not
turn off too dry. Sown at that time
on freshly plowed land, as with spring
oats, it rarely fails to CATCH.
To make a permanent moving
ground or meadow, the ground should
be broken in the spring, MANFRED
during the summer, plowed and har-
rowed every four or five weeks till
sowing time.
Of the grasses to SOW, I prefer the
timothy. It yields we'll, is valuable
for horses, is ready for the scythe
soon after wheat is cut-generally a
good time to make hay.
We may thank progressive farmers,
experiment stations and agricultural
colleges for some fixed facts in our
calling. Among them, the nutritive
value of certain stuffs and the time to
gather them. Not a great many years
ago wheat must not be cut with the
least greenness even at the joints.
Timothy must be dead ripe. and the
great bulk of the clover heads black.
Now [ believe it is considered that
the best -four is made from wheat that
was in stack before the berry was
quite hard. Timothy cut when enter
ing into bloom, and clover when not
more than about half the heads are
out, make, not only as much in bulk,
but a more nutritious and much better
relished hay. In other words, to
make u best hay and fodder, we
must cut the plant when the sap is
about ready to form the seed. Take
it on the wing-"make hay while the
sun Shines" do your work at the
most fitting opportunity, as the cut
grass is well wilted on the top, go to
stirring it, and keep stirring it
air and sunshine-it will soon do to
begin punching up and be fit to put
away.
Now here are enumerated the lead
ing grasses and clovers grown in our
country. The Timothy fourishes on
all fertile clay loans and well drained
bottom lands resists both heat and
cold. Orchard grass is alike luxuriant
from Maine to Georgia. Blue grass
probably grows to it's greatest perfec-
ton on the limestone soils fanking
the Allegheny range. But it is grow
ing beautifully in many places far
away from there. I see it here in
this section in old door-yard lawns,
along hedges and old fence places. /
have see it's slender blades two feet
long. The red top you are familiar
with, makes much of our natural hay.
These grasses just mentioned, with
L $500 -